In the 11-year period of 2005 through 2015, canines killed 360 Americans. Pit bulls contributed to 64% (232) of these deaths. Combined, pit bulls and rottweilers contributed to 76% of the total recorded deaths. | More »

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Attention public policymakers:

DogsBite.org requests that you hear the single most powerful reason why pit bulls must be regulated:

The average person cannot stop a pit bull attack.

A recent Chicago attack represents the genetic trait of "gameness," which is the pit bull's ability to "fight until death." This trait is exclusive to the pit bull breed. Once a pit bull starts an attack, it may be impossible to stop. Chicago police officers were forced to fire 10 bullets into the pit bull before the animal stopped its assault. This incident embodies the undeniable public safety threat that pit bulls present and the single most powerful reason why they must be regulated.

"They shot the dog once and he kept trying to attack the officer. So they opened fire again, nine, 10 more times. It took that many shots to put that dog down," said witness Marlo Weathers. Police are trying to find the owner of the pit bull. The [pregnant] female victim is hospitalized in fair condition. The man was treated for a bite to his leg."

It is unlikely that the pit bull owner will ever be found. This dog likely had no tags or microchip for identification purposes. As in many pit bull attack scenarios, there is no one to "blame the deed" upon, whereby making the mantra "blame the owner" useless. Both victims in this instance, the pregnant woman and man, will be forced to pay their own medical treatment costs. This is why, as a society, we must do all that we can to prevent these attacks before they occur.

1 comments:

Anonymous | 3/25/2009 1:07 PM | Flag3 bullets to stop pit bull:http://www.greensburgdailynews.com/homepage/local_story_083150952.html-------Heaton pointed out that officers are equipped for these situations with special bullets that shatter on contact, limiting their range beyond the target. Still, officers assessed the surroundings prior to discharging their weapons. Wenning said two shots to the dog’s head did not halt its attempts to reach the officers, however a third shot brought the situation to a stop.